England men’s head coach Steve Borthwick has confirmed his starting XV for the highly anticipated Calcutta Cup showdown against Scotland at Allianz Stadium on Saturday 22nd February.
The third-round Guinness Six Nations fixture will mark the 143rd meeting between the two nations, dating back to their first encounter in Edinburgh in 1871.
Vice-captain Ellis Genge starts at loosehead prop, joined in the front row by hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie and tighthead Will Stuart. Captain Maro Itoje partners Ollie Chessum in the second row, with Chessum earning his first start of this year’s Championship—the only change to the side that defeated France in Round Two.
The back row features Tom Curry on the blindside, Ben Earl on the openside, and Tom Willis at No.8, completing a dynamic forward pack.
At half-back, Alex Mitchell continues at scrum-half alongside fly-half Fin Smith. In midfield, Henry Slade wears the No.12 jersey, partnering Ollie Lawrence at outside centre.
The back three sees Ollie Sleightholme on the left wing, Tommy Freeman on the right, and Marcus Smith starting at full-back.
England’s bench follows a 6-2 forwards-backs split, with vice-captain Jamie George, Fin Baxter, Joe Heyes, George Martin, Chandler Cunningham-South, Ben Curry, Harry Randall, and Elliot Daly named among the replacements.
“We are looking forward to what will be another challenging and exciting match against Scotland,” said Borthwick.
“The Calcutta Cup is a special fixture, and we are determined to perform to our very best in front of our supporters at Allianz Stadium.”
England: 15 Marcus Smith (Harlequins, 41 caps), 14 Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints, 17 caps), 13 Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby, 33 caps), 12 Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 71 caps), 11 Ollie Sleightholme (Northampton Saints, 6 caps), 10 Fin Smith (Northampton Saints, 8 caps), 9 Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints, 20 caps), 8 Tom Willis (Saracens, 3 caps), 7 Ben Earl (Saracens, 39 caps), 6 Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 58 caps), 5 Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers, 25 caps), 4 Maro Itoje (Saracens, 90 caps) – captain, 3 Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 47 caps), 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks, 46 caps), 1 Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears, 68 caps) – vice-captain. Replacements: 16 Jamie George (Saracens, 98 caps) – vice-captain, 17 Fin Baxter (Harlequins, 7 caps), 18 Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers, 9 caps), 19 George Martin (Leicester Tigers, 21 caps), 20 Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins, 12 caps), 21 Ben Curry (Sale Sharks, 8 caps), 22 Harry Randall (Bristol Bears, 12 caps), 23 Elliot Daly (Saracens, 70 caps).